Packaging material and method of packaging



Dec. 4, 1951 JENETT 2,577,249

I PACKAGING MATERIAL AND METHOD OF PACKAGING Filed April 19, 1947 INVENTOR flf/VE) J'EA/ETT:

ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 4, 1951 PACKAGING MATERIAL AND METHOD OF PACKAGING Henry Jenett, Montclair, N. J.; Caroline Louise Maria, Jenett executrix of said Henry Jenett,

deceased Application April 19, 1947, Serial No. 742,761

8 Claims.

This invention relates to the art of packaging, and aims to provide a simple, inexpensive display and protective package for a variety of articles, characterized by its low cost and by its ability to display the packaged article to the eye while preserving it in its protective envelope which may be suitably decorated to set off the article in a most desirable manner. The invention also includes the method of producing the package.

Transparent packages have met with great favor recently because of their ability to display packaged articles to the customer while protecting .them from-handling. They have been made largely by wrapping the articles in preformed sheets or bags of plastic material, and then sealing the edges of the sheets around the articles. Because of the nature of the process, it has been necessary to use sheets of sufiicient body so they can be handled and sealed (by heat, solvent or adhesive) without frequent breakage or wrinkling. This generally makes the package rather expensive, particularly when really moisture-re sistant protective films are used (like polyvinyl chloride, vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymers,

polyvinylidene chloride, polystyrene, Pliofilm [cyclized rubber hydrocarbon polymers] polyethylene and others). In general, film thicknesses of the order of 3 to 10 mils are required to obtain the necessary properties in the sheet.

Another disadvantage of the present method is the difiiculty of decorating some of the plastic mate'rialssuch materials require special finishes and printing inks to get color or indicia to adhere to them.

It has been proposed to prepare transparent packages by casting their films of protective material about the articles to be packaged, in order to reduce the amount of material necessary to protect the packaged articles. Much thinner films can be prepared by such a method, but the final products, although cheaper, have many disadvantages. One is the fact that they cannot be decorated or printed by conventional means. A second difliculty with many products is that the article is too closely encased by the plastic. While this difficulty may be avoided with objects of irregular shape by using filming materials such as are disclosed in my co-pending applications, Serial No. 620,413, filed October 4, 1945 (now abandoned), and Serial No. 623,381, filed November 13, 1945 (now abandoned), flat thin objects such as razor blades cannot be easily removed even from the easiest stripping films in which they are embedded. And finally, many articles are sensitive to heat and solvents, one or the other of which must be used during the operations of casting the film.

It is the primary object of my invention ;-to; provide a new type of package which not only: has all the advantages of the present day expensive package prepared from sheets of plastic, but is very much reduced in cost, and avoids the present day printing and decorating difficulties.

encountered with plastic sheets.

Another object is to approximate the cost of is loosely encased in an envelope comprising two films of moisture-resistant plastic which 'are 2' mils or less in thickness immediately about the: object, and which are completely sealed to each other in the periphery, to give a completely sealed package. 1

. The invention can be best understood by'reference to the accompanying drawing, in which: Fig. 1 is a schematic illustration partly cross-section of an apparatus for producing a packaging base in accordance with the present invention,

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a completely" packaged article in accordance with the present invention,

Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line III-III of Fig. 1,

Fig. 4 is a plan view and partly in cross-section as viewed from the line IVIV of Fig. 3,

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line V-V of Fig. 1,

Fig. 6 is a plan view taken from the line VI VI' of Fig. 5,

Fig. '7 is a view similar to Fig. 6 but showing the packaging base after cutting of the longitudinal edge thereof,

Fig. 8 is a cross-sectional view of the packaging base or envelope of the present invention inits open or article filling position,

Fig. 9 is a view similar to Fig. 8 but showing the article or object in place preparatory to closing the packaged article, and

Fig. 10 is a cross-sectional view of the finished packaged article as shown in l 'ig. 2"in position ,just after sealing the edge of the package.

Referring now to the drawing-in detail, the, package of the present invention may be formed by an apparatus, such as shown in Fig. 1, wherein two rolls of light-weight cardboard or non-absorbent paper 5 and 6 are provided, which have been previously punched, so as to provide openings 1 therein slightly larger than the article to s be encased in the finished package, and the punched paper may also 'carry on its surface any; desired printing or advertising matter 8. The 1 webs 9 and Hi from the rolls 5 and 6 and with the openings therein in alignment, are fed be-w tween 2. pair of rollers I2 and .l3..together,with.. a web [4, of cellophane or the like, sandwiched 'f therebetween with the latter feeding from a roll and being of slightly narrower width than the paper webs 9 and it. 7

This laminated web of paper-cellophanepaper, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4;. is. then feds downwardly of a container or tank I6, around a roller I! provided adjacent the bottom ofthe" tank, and thence upwardly around a roller 18, where :it is. then wound upon aspool or :the like; H! which is rotated by any suitable meanspsuchf as a1belt20 driven by an electric motor .22... Disposed within'the tank: It is abath 23.01? plastic whichmay be :in' the fOll'l'l'IOf arheatedthermoa plastic,'a solution of axplastic in a'solventgar hot reversibly gellable compositionasuch as described. in:my' co-pending application 'Serial No; 628,381, filed November 13,1945; or'in'anyotheriorm from :which a "film can be laid down;

During the upward .travel'of the laminated web from the -bath:23, sthe plastic congeals into a film 24 completely surrounding the laminated .web of paperecellophane-paper:and if the bath. happens to be a solution of1a plastic in a solvent,the coated web 'may-pass'through andryers25 to expedite evaporation-of the solvent. and 'congealing of the filmi24. Thespool lil'thus carries'a-web"of a coated packaging'base'such asshown in Figs; Stand Gand may 'besold :in this'formas an 4:; article 'of commerce although I prefer-to further condition: the :package base for the .customer-- packer: v

To this end the laminated web is next unwound from'the spool l9'and'rewound upon a similar spool; However, during-such transfer one:edge' passes "beneath aknifeor the like 25 (Fig.':5), which trims offone edge 2! of the plastic fiimzs and the corresponding portion of both webs of pa per 9 and 13, as shown by the dotted line. inrFig: 7,1le'avingrthe cut edge open;v The web thusion thefinal spool. and ready for the manufacturer-i packager is as shown in Fig. '7. It consists ofzthe. film ofrplastio 24 which may range from .0001 to .002 inch in thickness, supported by -the paper webs s :and 1| flpthe .paper. having pairs of articlereceiving-openings' I in register with each other and separated by the web of cellophanel i. Also, the outer surface of the paper webs-'9 and it bears printed: decorations,- marks, or advertising 8, in accordance with the desires of each customerand all'such printed matter is cle'arlyz visible through the thin: plastic film.

In Figs. 8, 9 and 10 there is shown the manner intwhich the customer-packager forms "the completely packaged article. First the laminated web, as shown in Figx'i, with its-cut edge is un-- wound from the spool and cut intolengths surficientfo'r only one article, or as many as desired, thus providing three out edges with theplastic fil'm serving as a'hingeat theuncut edge. The laminated-web -is then "unfolded by flapping the bottomle'af down'and around the 'uncut plastic edge as ahinge; and thus from left to right as shown "bythe arrow in Fi'g. 8,"-so that them-93sec,

film M is uppermost and the paper webs 9 and IE! below, and the cellophane web 24 removed.

The rticle to be packaged, and shown in the drawing as an optical lens 28, is laid on the unsupported film 24 bridging the opening I in the paper web 3, Because of the thinness of such plastic -filmt24 it is deformed," as shown: in Fig. 9, thusclosely fitting the lower surface of the article 28. The web is then closed in the direction shbwnby the arrow in Fig. 9, which brings the filmsiiitogether with the thin film 24 bridging the opening Tin the paper web I0, in alignment with the article 28 with the unsupported film being likewise' deformed and closely fitting the --upper-surface of the article 2%, and positioning the paper webs a'and In on the outside of the laminate as -shoW-n:in Fig. 10.

The closed article-bearing package is then ready' for sealing which may be done by subjecting the open edges to heat and pressure, as from a pairofdies 28 and-:35 :as shown in'tFig." 10,

which produces a heat seal at the edgesriii: Dur=- ing'this pressing-operation, the print ordecoraeti'onz8 is'ti'ghtly bonded tothe plastic; byvvirtue= eithe -solvent action of the hot'plastic,.soflthat when th'epaper webs 0 and lil'are stripped-away: in the final operation, a printed or decorated" plastic package encasing the article is obtained: as shown inv Fig. 2;- Also in some instances and! depending upon the particular compositionof the plastic film i l; the edges may be sealed. bytthe' application of a solvent to the open edges which.

dissolves the film edges sufilciently to bond. the 1' same together.

It should benoted that because of th'elackof a paper backing in the -areas of -*the article-' bearing openings lfthereis no laminating action 1 of the plastic at such surface-'hence a pocket-is left in which the article is held in place entirely" by'the normal frictional iorces; Thus thepla'sticstrips -away cleanly and without 'effort;-.be.-: cause the skin is much" thinner thanin package's made frompreformed sheets, the package is as the two'webs are separated by a facingswhich:

prevents the plastic from merging the-two'webs. through the cut-out openings. Instead of utilizing two rollsof paper as shown, itis'equally; ieasible-toemploy a single roll provided with? laterally-aligned cut-'outand fold the papergin which event the folded edge-would be subse-: quently out along with theplastic'edgein :the edge trimming operation. When desired the cut-outs may be staggered so that none. overlap" with the paper acting as" a back-up agent, although such instance is believed to bewarewhen a construction'of this type would be'de-' sired.

It should thusbecome obvious to those skilled in theart'that-an inexpensive plastic packageis herein provided wherein the thinness thereof is of the order of '2'mils or less and whichzis readily strippable from the'article, Also an exceptionally economical method of producing such" package is herein shown and described and wherein the packagecan be formed "to accom-u modate substantially-= any 'desired'shaped articles such as medicinal products in capsule or pill fonn, razor blades, etc. Moreover, the package of the present invention is particularl adapted to the packaging of foodstuifs which cannot be subjected to heat or solvents. On fiat articles films as thin as'.1 mil may be cast, which are just thick enough to support the article in the cut-outs and which will distend or stretch to tightly pack the article.

Although one specific embodiment of the present invention has been shown and described, it is to be understood that other modifications thereof may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A packaging material comprising a supporting base formed of strips of laminae having registerable cut-out portions therein and separated by a sandwiched strip of removable laminate, and a film of scalable plastic material superimposed on said supporting base and'completely covering the latter and bridging said outout portions.

2. A packaging material comprising a supporting base formed of strips of laminae having registerable cut-out article receivin portions therein and separated by a sandwiched strip of removable laminate, a film of sealable plastic material superimposed on said supporting base and covering the latter and bridging said outout portions, and a cut edge on said base to facilitate unfolding of said laminae and removal of said sandwiched removable laminate, as well as insertion of articles to be packaged in the cut-out article receiving portions.

3. A packaging material comprising a supporting base formed of strips of laminae having registerable cut-out article receiving portions therein and separated by a sandwiched strip of removable laminate, printing matter carried on the outside surface of said supporting base, and a film of scalable plastic material superimposed on said supporting base and covering the latter and bridging said cut-out portions.

4. A packaging material comprising a supporting base formed of strips of laminae having registerable cut-out article receiving portions therein and separated by a sandwiched removable laminate, printing matter carried on the outside surface of said supporting base, a film of scalable plastic material superimposed on said supporting base and covering the latter and bridging said cut-out portions, and a cut edge on said base to facilitate unfolding of said laminae and removal of said sandwiched removable laminate, as well as insertion of articles to be packaged in the cutout article receiving portions.

5. The method of preparing packaging material which comprises dieing out a supporting base to provide registering coaxially aligned article holding cut-outs, backing up the cut-outs with a sandwiched solvent impermeable membrane, and casting a film of plastic over the supporting base with its sandwiched membrane to provide a cutout base overlaid with a continuous plastic film for the reception of packaged articles. 7

6. The method of preparing packaging material which comprises dieing out a supporting base to provide registering coaxially aligned article holding cut-outs. backing up the cut-outs with a sandwiched solvent impermeable membrane,

casting a film of plastic over the supporting base with its sandwiched membrane to provide ,a cut-out base overlaid with a continuous plastic film, and cutting one edge of the supporting base to facilitate removal of the sandwiched membrane and insertion of the articles to be packaged in the cut-outs for support by the plastic film.

7. A method of preparing and packaging material which comprises dieing out a supporting base to provide a laminae of registering coaxially aligned article holding cut-outs, backing up the cut-outs with a sandwiched solvent impermeable membranous laminate, casting a film of plastic over the supporting base with its sandwiched membranous laminate to provide a cut-out base overlaid with a continuous plastic film, cutting the edge of the supporting base and unfolding the laminae to facilitate removal of the sandwiched membranous laminate, inserting the articles to be packaged on the film formed across the cut-outs in the base, folding the laminae with the plastic surfaces in contact to enclose the inserted articles, sealing the plastic film around the articles encased therein, and stripping the supporting base laminae with the cutout portions from the outside of the completely sealed envelope.

8. A method of preparing and packaging material which comprises dieing out a supporting base provided with printed matter on the surface thereof to provide a laminae of registering coaxially aligned article holding cut-outs, backing up the cut-outs with a sandwiched solvent impermeable membranous laminate, casting a-film of plastic over the supporting base with its sandwiched membranous laminate to provide a cutout base overlaid with a continuous plastic film, cutting the edge of the supporting base and unfolding the laminae about its uncut edge as a hinge to facilitate removal of the sandwiched membranous laminate, inserting the articles to be packaged on the film formed across the cutouts in the base, folding the laminae with the plastic surfaces in contact to enclose the inserted articles and dispose the supporting base laminae on the exterior, heat sealing the plastic film under pressure around the articles encased 'therein to transpose the printed matter from the supporting base to the plastic film, and stripping the supporting base laminae with the out-out portions from the outside of the completely sealed envelope while leaving the printed matter on the film of the envelope.

HENRY JENETT.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,372,947 Gerritson Mar. 29, 1921 1,974,465 Lewis a Sept. 25, 1934 2,160,367 Maxfield May 30, 1939 2,232,783 Hausheer Feb. 25, 1941 2,303,346 Flood Dec. 1, 1942 2,358,246 Nicolle Sept. 12, 1944 2,377,118 Weisman May 29, 1945 2,438,089 Carson Mar. 16, 1948 2,453,441 LaFair Nov. 9, 1948 

